Historic Fingerprints: An Untold Record of the Enslaved Benjamin Jackson

Mark your calendars for Monday, November 18,  at 6:30 at the Bristol Public Library, Benjamin Jackson Addressing Slavery in Our Area:

Ben Jackson needs no reminder that slavery existed. Since he was a young Black student growing up in Marion Virginia, the retiree has been drawn to his ties with the legacy of slavery. He calls himself a “history nut,” but his latest research is more like that of a detective, uncovering pieces of history that have been in plain view for centuries. The Woodlawn resident has trained his eye to detect the fingerprints of slaves imprinted in handmade brick produced in Southwest Virginia well over 200 years ago.

Once you start looking, you can’t help but see it — the indentions of fingerprints of enslaved men, women and even children who helped fashion the bricks. “These prints have been on bricks for hundreds of years and unless you’re looking…